


Say You'll Stay With Me Tonight

by fandomsandanythingelse



Series: This is Home [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alcohol, Eavesdropping, Friends to Lovers, Implied Sexual Content, Internalized Homophobia, Kissing, M/M, alcohol use, implied nsfw, referenced cheating
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:47:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26018254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomsandanythingelse/pseuds/fandomsandanythingelse
Summary: Janus goes out to a gay bar and runs into someone he'd never expect to meet.Patton is drunk and tired and needs someone to vent to.
Relationships: Deceit | Janus Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: This is Home [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1884430
Comments: 2
Kudos: 94





	Say You'll Stay With Me Tonight

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from Walk Me Home by P!nk

It was a week after Patton’s apology and it had been quite a day for Janus. Virgil and Remus had been getting on his nerves more than usual, the PTA meeting had gone over by about twenty minutes because Patton had to keep Susan from physically fighting with Karen (even though Janus would pay actual money to see them go at it just once), and his landlord had been just rude when he handed his rent check over. So he decided to take a little adult vacation at the local gay bar. He deserved a little treat.

He was walking past a booth in the bar when he heard, "Janus?"

Janus turned around at the sound of his name, a little shocked to see who had said it.

"Patton? What brings you here?"

Patton gestured to the table in front of him, an already half-empty bottle of Grey Goose sitting on it. "Drinking. Wanna sit?"

Janus sat in the booth across from the man, unsure what to do or say.

"Seven years."

"What?"

"Tonight's the seventh anniversary of my wife's funeral."

"Sorry to hear that." What else was Janus supposed to say?

"And instead of being home with my kids, telling them stories about her, remembering her, I left them with a babysitter and am sitting here in a gay bar, thinking about you."

"Me?" This was definitely not going anywhere that Janus thought it would.

"Yeah. Y'know-" Patton took a drink directly from the bottle. He set it down, his face twisted in a mix of concentration and disgust. "I married Joyce twelve years ago. A little out of pressure from my family and peers, a little out of the fact that she was the only woman I actively talked to. But I never really loved her. Not like a man should love his wife.

"Yeah, sure, I thought I did for a long time. But the day of her funeral, I decided to go out drinking. Not sure how, but I ended up here. A guy took me home with him, and I realized that night that I really was gay."

Janus remained quiet. What could he say?

"I haven't ever told anyone about that," Patton continued, appearing to not have expected a response anyway. "About me liking guys. Not even my kids. How could I? Like, 'Hey boys, guess what, I'm actually gay and never really loved your mother.' That's… probably the worst thing I could do to them." He took another drink.

"But everyone keeps trying to set me up with their sister, or friend, or cousin, or single daughter my age, and I just… can't keep pretending. So I come here when it gets too much. I was eyeing that guy up at the bar when I saw you." He nodded to some random guy, but Janus wasn't paying attention to who exactly.

"You said you were thinking about me?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah. I can't stop thinking about you, for some reason. I think that's why I hate you so much. Because some part of me won't allow myself to admit that I love you."

Janus froze. Love? How was he supposed to handle that? Patton, his rival since he joined the PTA… loved him?

“But that’s not something I can do anything about,” Patton said, taking yet another drink.

“Why not?” Janus asked.

“Because you hate me. Because if I admit that I’m gay, I could lose everything.”

"Not what matters most."

Patton laughed once. "They'd kick me out of the PTA, Susan would probably call CPS the second she found out. You know how she is."

"CPS wouldn't take your kids away just because you like men."

"No, but they'd probably find something. My secret bottle of vodka I keep in my dresser, the fact that I keep the knives on the kitchen counter. They'd find some excuse to take them away from me."

Janus took Patton's hand. "If CPS tries anything, I will tell them how great a father you are, and your sexuality cannot and will not change that."

Patton looked up at Janus and smiled. "Remind me to ask you out when I'm sober."

Janus smiled back. "Not if I ask you first."

Patton took another drink from the bottle, then offered it to Janus. "Want some?"

"I'm fine, thank you." But that got Janus thinking. "Patton, I don't want to judge your coping mechanisms, but how much of that bottle were you planning on drinking before asking someone to take you home with them?"

Patton furrowed his brow, then looked at the bottle. "I don't know? It's kind of hard to focus right now."

"I can imagine," Janus said. He gently took the bottle away from Patton. "I think you've had enough tonight, so let's maybe get you some water."

* * *

Janus pulled up in front of Patton's house, then got out to get the man out of the passenger seat. Patton leaned on him heavily, smiling and stumbling at every step. Janus was glad he'd got to Patton before anyone else did.

"Keys?" he asked as they got to the front door.

Patton searched through his pockets and grabbed his keys, almost dropping them on the ground before handing them to Janus, who unlocked the door and carried Patton inside.

A young woman with bright pink hair walked into the living room from the kitchen, holding a glass of water. "Mr. Sanders, you're… with Mr. Mentiras?"

"Oh, hello Marisol," Janus said, recognizing the girl who lived in the apartment next to his.

"Hi!" Patton said with a wave.

Marisol looked between Janus and Patton confused.

"He's drunk, I ran into him while I was out," Janus said. "Here, I'll get him to bed and be right back out to pay you."

"Okay…"

Janus hurried and laid Patton down in his bed, then took his shoes off and tucked him in. He almost kissed him on the forehead out of habit but didn't. Patton was snoring pretty much right as Janus closed the bedroom door.

"So you're dating Mr. Sanders?" Marisol asked.

"No, I told you I found him while I was out. What's your usual rate?"

"Ten an hour, per kid."

"Alright, so for Patton, it's twenty an hour." Janus pulled out his wallet. "What time did you get here?"

"Around ten."

Janus nodded. "Alright. So he probably would have stumbled back in around five, which is--" he started counting on his fingers-- "seven hours, so…"

"Whoa, no it's okay, I'm good with the eighty for the four hours I've been here."

"Mari, I know it's tough for you and your girlfriend right now." Janus held out one hundred forty dollars. "Just take it."

Mari hesitated for a moment, then took the cash. "Thanks."

Janus nodded. "Do you have a way to get home? I can give you a ride."

"No, it's fine, I have the car tonight. Thanks for the offer, though. You're really sweet, Mr. Mentiras."

"Lies and slander," Janus said with a wave of his hand. "I have a reputation to maintain."

Marisol laughed. "Keep telling yourself that," she said as she walked out the door.

Janus shook his head with a soft smile. He took off his shoes, laid back on the couch, and fell asleep.


End file.
